Removing Supers.--It is now quite time to remove glasses and supers
of every kind from hives intended for stocks, and to see that each
one contains at least 20 lbs. of honey; if not, they had better at
once be made up to that weight by feeding. At this time of year I
would recommend syrup in preference to barley-sugar, because it can
be given in larger quantities, and stored more quickly. Honey is,
unquestionably, the best food that can be given; and, next to it, a
compound of honey, loaf sugar, and water. Barley-sugar is more suited
to spring feeding, when but little is required. The proportions are,
one pound of sugar, one-quarter of a pint of water, and one-quarter of
a pound of honey, mixed and simmered over a slow fire till the sugar is
melted.
Early Breeding.--In our fitful climate this is a most important thing
to effect, and every possible means for promoting it should be used;
therefore in addition to what I have already said in the calendar for
last month--viz., leaving the stocks rich in store, as well as in Bees,
I would now say, Keep the stocks as cool as possible till the end of
February; and if, as has already been said, that cold retards the
hatching of the brood, warmth may be supposed to promote it. I would
therefore recommend, where it is at all practicable, at the end of
February to increase the temperature of the hives, by defending them
externally from the cold of March and April, by any means that may
the most readily be had recourse to for the purpose. Perhaps binding
the hives neatly over with haybands would be as little trouble and
inexpensive as anything.
Shading.--It is very desirable to shade the hives from the winter's
sun, for the Bees are not unfrequently tempted thereby to leave their
hives, never to return.
Stocks for Next Season.--The time will soon arrive for setting apart
stocks to stand through the winter. Each one intended for this purpose
should be made to weigh from 20 to 25 lbs., and the Bees of all weak
or very old stocks, the hives of which are decaying so as not to stand
with safety through another season, should be driven to those that are
the least populous in the apiary; for it must be remembered, that net
only a good store of provision, but that a large quantity of Bees,
also, is necessary to secure success for another year.
Driving.--For performing this operation, as well as for almost all
others, I very much prefer the middle of a bright day to any other
time. The process is very simple, and may be effected in a few minutes.
I very much wish that I could persuade all my cottage friends to adopt
it, instead of the cruel and wasteful method of "burning;" for in weak
stocks the Bees themselves are frequently of as much value as their
little store of honey and wax; and, by joining them to other stocks,
very considerable advantages arise. My method of driving is this:--On
a bright day, between eleven and one o'clock, turn the hive from which
the Bees are to be driven bottom upwards, in a shaded corner of the
garden, and place upon it a hive of the same size; see that they fit
closely, and to make the junction more complete, tie a cloth round the
hives where they meet. Then, with two sticks, keep up a gentle but
continuous tapping upon the sides of the inverted hive for about ten
minutes, the Bees will by that time have left it and gone into the
upper one. Having ascertained that fact, take it immediately to the
place where the driven hive was taken from, and place it upon the same
floor-board; carry the driven hive 50 or 60 yards away, and place it
upon a fresh floor-board; the few Bees that remain in it, as well as
those that are out at work, will return to the driven Bees. All is now
finished until an hour after sunset, except emptying the driven hive of
its store, when two sticks may be laid upon the ground about 8 inches
apart, opposite the stock to which the driven Bees are to be joined;
then, with a smart stroke dash out the Bees between the sticks, and
instantly, but very gently, place the stock they are intended to enter
upon the sticks; leave them for the night, having first defended them
from rain, should any fall; and in the morning, an hour before sunrise,
replace the stock in its original position, and all will be peace and
harmony. Here, then, will be an increased population--a stock thereby
enabled to stand through the winter much better, and to send out a much
earlier swarm, if swarms are desired, than if the union had not being
effected.
Wasps.--It will be well to destroy wasps' nests in those localities
where they are to be found.
Stands.--The end of the month will be a good time to examine the
pedestals upon which the stocks are placed; for it is not unusual to
hear of a stock being destroyed by the pedestal decaying just below
the surface of the earth, so that by a strong wind, or anything
accidentally going against it, it is broken, and the combs by the fall
so misplaced as to reader the stock of little or no value.
Preserving Hives of Comb.--Where the Bees have deserted their hives,
and it is swarms of the present year that have generally done so, the
combs should be carefully preserved, by placing the hives in some dry
spot out of the reach of mice or insects, for the purpose of hiving
swarms into them in the spring. Tho advantages afforded to a swarm
by putting it into a hive of fresh, clean comb, are scarcely to be
credited by those who have not experienced it.